Many existing computing devices have network adapters configured for network communication. The use of the wireless connection by applications executing on the computing devices is increasing. For example, electronic mail applications, stock service applications, news application, and other applications require frequent network access to maintain current data. For mobile computing devices having wireless network access, such constant use of the wireless network connection increases power consumption thereby reducing battery life. Further, when the mobile computing device exits a network coverage area, the device performs repeated sequential channel scans to find networks available for connection. That is, existing computing devices sequentially and repeatedly scan a list of available channels until a connection is available. This scanning requires a substantial amount of power. The chances of connecting to a network sooner are greater if the device scans frequently. However, frequent scans have increased power requirements that in turn lead to reduced battery life.